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Bryant Bulldogs
History Bryant University originally competed in the NAIA from 1963 until 1976, becoming a Division II member in 1977. From there they became a charter member of the Northeast-10 Conference. During Bryant's tenure in the NAIA, they competed as an independent, but had success on the basketball court. The most famous sport in the schools history, between the 1966 national championship, and the current success of the team. During the 1966 season the team went undefeated on their way to a championship. During their NAIA years, the university did not sponsor that many sports, but was successful in the ones that they did offer. The move to Division II was partly because of the new campus, and the goals of the future they could have. During their NAIA years, they were known as the Indians, and were located in Providence, Rhode Island, near Brown University. The school's largest rivalry at the time was Salem State College. The school was still a small business school, who was just stepping into the door of respect and notability. Bryant went through about a 20 year period where there was hardly any success and most of the time no success. This was from 1980 season until the 2001 season. The change started when the university brought Coach Max Good, from UNLV to Bryant to help turn around the basketball program. In his short tenure he has made the university a powerhouse on the basketball court, making the NCAA tournament in only his third season at the helm, and they have not missed the playoffs since. They have also made it to a national championship game versus Virginia Union University in 2004, as well as an elite eight appearance, and two sweet sixteen appearances. The success has brought the program back up to par with other Northeast-10 teams, as well as putting them on a national level of respect. Coach Good has brought a lot to the program, coming in he brought Division I expectations of the players, and has done so. With his success three alumni have made it to professional basketball, two of them overseas, and another competing for his national olympic team for the islands of Cape Verde. Coach Good has also brought national recruiting to the university. He has attracted student-athletes from California, Ohio, Texas, New Jersey, and also players from every New England state. Coaches ]] Bryant University has had six coaches during its history, the school has two notable coaches, Tom Duffy and Max Good. Coach Tom Duffy is a Pawtucket, Rhode Island native and lead a small college to a national championship. The school which many people did not even hear of was brought to the attention of many. The other successful coach is Max Good, who has brought the team towards a new level of success, the team has learned to be a consistent powerhouse, throughout the different recruiting classes. They have also learned how to be a playoff hardened team, even the freshman have come to expect that the most success they will have will be when the conference and national tournaments come around. Max Good left after the 2008 season. He took a position at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. He was quoted as saying, he wanted to build Bryant up, but the money LMU offered was too good to pass up, and that he would stay for recruiting, scheduling and help in finding a new coach. Record Book Year By Year External Links *Official athletics site Category:Schools in Rhode Island Category:NCAA Division I schools Category:Northeast Conference members